Myanmar in need of better public transport system

While Myanmar is on the path of development due to the changes in politics and economy, major cities like Yangon are demanding a better public transport system.

The Mayor of Bogota, the capital of Columbia, said that ‘A developed country is not a place where the poor have cars. It’s where the rich use public transport’. This quotation points out that good public transport is essential for developed countries.

A good public transport could solve many difficulties in our daily life from living cost to a health living. Urbanization was expanded laterally because of good public transport in some mega cities of neighbouring countries.

In Yangon, a dependable inner city rail transport is an urgent need. If the railway network could be expanded with regular trains running up to the urban areas, many offices and companies will be built there, and workers will not need to come to the downtown areas. When city areas become larger, property prices could be controlled automatically.

The living costs in downtown areas are higher than in suburban areas. Therefore, low-income people can only afford to live away from business hubs. The metro of Yangon city is nearly 4,000 square miles and its urban area is about 232 square mile, while Bangkok city of neighbouring Thailand has a metro of 3,000 square mile and the city area of 606 square mile.

The Kingdom’s city could be expanded laterally together with comfortable rail transportations such as BTS and MRT. Property price is at an affordable rate, saving time and money in daily life.

Public transportation of inner cities should rely on railway lines, not on a large number of city buses which account for traffic congestions in the city. Myanmar people are very hopeful about the emergence of better services in the transportation sector. Possession of private cars is not as important as a good public transportation.